PostMuse sent this card, a souvenir of a visit to T&D's Cats of the World, an animal refuge in Penn's Creek, Pennsylvania, which rescues exotic animals. PostMuse said that the center was wonderful and that the animals seemed happy.

A postcrosser in Minsk sent this card of a 19th-century painting titled Naked boy, by A.A. Ivanov. While the painting has a pensive summer feel to it, the expression on the boy's face is a tad disturbing.

Wednesday, July 27, 2011

A postcrosser from China created a very effective card made with simple materials: newspaper and stickers. I was pleased that it arrived intact, even though it was simply newspaper and tape glued onto cardboard. The back of the card was equally interesting, with a collage of news, torn note paper and pretty stamps.

A wonderful collage card from an Indonesian postcrosser incorporating a crossword puzzle. All the answers are in Bahasa. I love the gorgeous sea turtles too - I miss the mythical islands of this country!

I love this card sent to me by Jozef Bajus, who was recently in Atlanta visiting his daughter. During the trip, Jozef and his wife Olga visited the High Museum, where he saw this evocative work by African-American artist Radcliffe Bailey. A mixed media piece, it is called En Route.

A postcrosser in Taiwan sent this sweet Year of the Rabbit card with some fab stamps from previous zodiac years cleverly affixed to the front of the card. She of course also used rabbit stamps for the card itself. Great card!

Sunday, July 24, 2011

Friends Sandy and Louis stopped in Philadelphia on their way back to Maryland and visited Magic Gardens, a dizzying 'folk art environment' created by mosaicist Isaiah Zagar on South Street. Sandy wrote that she was "disoriented walking because of the multiple reflections" created by the many mirrors used in the sprawling mosaic.

Saturday, July 23, 2011

Priscilla sent this striking postcard she got last weekend in Washington, on a visit to the National Museum of Women in the Arts. It shows a work called Milky Way Dreaming by Aboriginal artist Janet Forrester Ngala. It made we want to go immediately to look at the night sky.

Sunday, July 17, 2011

Lynn B. sent this ad card for a popular Jewish delicatessen in Brookline, from a recent trip to Massachusetts with her mother and sister. Love the dyspeptic dame featured. Zaftig is, of course, Yiddish for voluptuous.

Keeping it British, here is a vintage card of Tunbridge Wells, in Kent. Some years ago on a visit to England, my friend Carolyn took me to this old town and introduced me to a culinary ware shop where we each bought a knife for cutting tomatoes. It's the best knife of its kind and I still use mine. Love the Miss Marple look of the women at the fountain.

A postcrosser in the south of England (on a clear day she can see France) sent this amusing card of an old shop building in nearby Canterbury. Sadly, she writes that the children's bookstore that used to be there has recently gone out of business.

Friend Lynn B. sent this card from a show at the University of Pennsylvania Museum of Archaeology and Anthopology in Philadelphia. She and her husband recently moved to the city and are enjoying its many attractions. They spent a recent morning at the museum mainly to see the "heartbreaking Afghan war rugs, rather devastating in their beauty." They then had lunch at the iconic White Dog Cafe, before going on to see the big Sheila Hicks retrospective. Ah, city life.

Sunday, July 10, 2011

On a lighter note, an eight-year-old postcrosser with a cat named Helium (love it) sent this funny frog card. She also wrote that she loves reading Donald Duck magazines and eating blueberries. I second the blueberries, will pass on Donald.

As this postcard reminds me, Animals in Distress, the local rescue center I support, is having its annual radio fund-raiser this week. Alas, the center, which has been giving second chances to battered animals since 1977, is suffering a dire lack of funding. Blame the economy.

Friday, July 8, 2011

This tangy card is from a German postcrosser who works for one of Germany's biggest newspapers (hear, hear) and lives by the motto, If life gives you lemons, make lemonade. The card tied in perfectly with the one below from PostMuse, which arrived in the same mail delivery.

This card is part of a series by Linzie Hunter, who turned the subject lines of spam into offbeat postcards. That is making some kind of lemonade!

Wednesday, July 6, 2011

A Chinese postcrosser named Yuyu sent this zany Year of the Rabbit card along with some fab stamps. The contemporary buildings featured on two of the stamps were built for the Olympics. The one at top looks like a homage to the Polaroid camera. What memories it conjures up. Love the card, love the stamps.

Tuesday, July 5, 2011

A very interesting card from a postcrosser in Kazan, Republic of Tartarstan. She writes that her city has two distinct cultures - Russian and Tartar. A strange card shot from under a bridge, but even more striking is that little surveillance monitor. What is it looking for in these placid waters?

A great card of rocks formed by glaciers. This postcrosser just graduated from high school and was to be a video game designer. He also loves to ride his mountain unicycle. Huh? I cannot imagine how that's done.

This gorgeous viewcard from a Chinese postcrosser reminded me of the time I spent on these mountains. The trails are all paved in concrete and mostly steps up and steps down. Afterwards, I had to get a foot massage to relieve my sore legs. The fog helps create the illusion of fairies and goddesses in these mountains.

The secret sharer postcrosser recommends foods that are typical in Taiwan: stinky tofu, pearl milk tea, beef noodles, and pig blood pudding. She includes the former name of her country, "Formosa," which brings back memories of the colonial past.

From the ground on Folsom Street. I went to his website - he teaches a combination of yoga and boxing for fitness. He also happens to be an accomplished public speaker, says the website. There is reference to a barbershop but no details provided.

Saturday, July 2, 2011

Friday, July 1, 2011

Who says the US has boring stamps? The USPS keeps coming out with one gorgeous sheet after another!!! Lucky again - I happened to inquire at the PO today about these stamps and the postmistress said, well yes, we have a few hidden away. I got 2 sheets right there and then! Included in this sheet are some of my favorite objects - IBM Selectric, Brownie Camera, Russel Wright dinnerware, Fiestaware, and the old-fashioned black telephone.

Amazing stamp sheet commemorating the Civil War. On the left is Fort Sumter, when the Confederate forces attacked and the Union soldiers were forced to surrender. On the right is First Bull Run, which was the first significant engagement between Union and Confederate troops.